efficient-home-heating / Green Building & Sustainable Home Renovation Information & Advice

Outdoor wood burning boilers: Is this the right home heating system? For homeowners seeking energy independence, outdoor wood burning boilers offer a smart solution for centralizing heating away from the living envelope. Also known as hydronic heaters or outdoor wood furnaces, these units are designed to burn stove woo...

There has been an increase in the use of wood and other biomass fuel for heating homes across the colder parts of North America & Canada for the last decade. In Eastern Canada and the USA in particular this trend was largely triggered by one storm in 1998. There was a noticeable spike in woodstove sales in 1999 thr...

How well does a mini split heat pump work in a LEED or Passive House certified home?  Really well as it happens, see a great example of a split system heat pump installation in the Edelweiss LEED Platinum V4 Home below: The Edelweiss House has a radiant floor to keep our feet comfortable but we rely on a Mitsubishi Mr....

With a heating bill of $77 CAD for an entire winter, the Naugler House is without a doubt the most energy-efficient home in New Brunswick. Not only will it save money long-term, it is saving money right now, as the monthly savings on utilities outweigh the added mortgage cost for energy-efficient upgrades to Passive Ho...

How to save money on heating a pool Swimming in a warm pool is a wonderful feeling, and while we hear from many pool owners in the cooler states & provinces that they really enjoy the experience of a warm swim from late spring or early summer through to autumn, the cost of heating their pool can be a major downer. ...

What is passive solar heating and cooling? Passive heating and cooling of homes is not new. The above image is of Mesa Verde National Park, the Ancestral Puebloan cliff dwellings in Colorado, occupied from 700 to 1300 AD. This early North American settlement was shaded from the summer sun, but fully exposed to the sun ...

Is natural gas bad? Yes it very much is no matter how you look at it. Burning any fossil fuel releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and contributes to the warming of the planet. The carbon dioxide emissions from burning natural gas are lower than with oil or coal, but there are other emissions to be concerned abo...

Smart homes take advantage of smart phone technologies to provide you with automated control of your homes systems such as heating and lighting.  This guide provides a comprehensive look at the key aspects of this topic. Below is an overview of the sections we will cover, allowing you to jump directly to the informatio...

Is electric heating eco-friendly? Determining whether or not electricity is an efficient and ecologically responsible means to heat a home should include the initial electricity production as well. Burning fossil fuels to fire electric power generation is only around 30-60% efficient. There is also significant loss fro...

This is the fourth piece in a blog series written by Craig Anderson as he documents the design and construction of an off-grid LEED Gold passively-heated home. See post 1 of the off-grid homes blog here, the overview . or post 2 in the off-grid homes blog here covering design and construction choices. or here see post ...

Electric heating is the best option in Quebec. The downside? Winter peaks, where during cold winter days, the grid can become overloaded. Bi-energy heating systems address this problem by using another energy source, which unfortunately is often a fossil fuel. To reduce GHGs and meet environmental targets, fossil fuels...